There was tension twice yesterday at the Maiduguri
airport in Borno State as the Nigerian military
barred 278 Islamic pilgrims headed for the Umrah
pilgrimage from boarding a flight. In a separate
development, the military also stopped Senator
Mohammed Ali Ndume from taking a flight out of
Maiduguri, the capital of Borno State.

Our correspondent gathered that the military
prohibited the senator and other pilgrims from
boarding the chartered aircraft and forced both
flights to take off from the Maiduguri airport with
empty
seats.

One of the frustrated pilgrims told our
correspondent that he and the others intended to
travel to Saudi Arabia to perform the Umrah.
Another source disclosed that Governor Kashim
Shettima had intervened to enable the pilgrims to
fly, but his efforts yielded no results.
“There was raised tension at the airport,” one of
the sources said.

Skynet International Limited, a hajj and Umrah
operator, had chartered an airline to convey the
pilgrims to their destination. But as the 278
pilgrims, who had undergone security checks,
waited to board the plane, the military issued what
one source described as “a strange orders”
directing the plane to take off empty. The military
then directed the pilgrims to travel five hours by
road to the Kano airport through the often-unsafe
Maiduguri-Damaturu-Potiskum Road.

Military officials at the airport cited orders from the
chief of air staff to immediately close the Maiduguri
airport to commercial aircraft. The military said the
action was for security reasons. Its officials
ignored explanations by officials of Borno State
Government, including Governor Shettima, that it
was risky for the pilgrims to travel by road to
Kano, especially given past instances of attacks
along the route.

The military also waved off explanations by the
management of Skynet, which chartered the airline,
that it had written to Nigeria’s aviation officials as
well as military and other security authorities
about its flight arrangements, and had received
proper authorization. The firm also reportedly
reminded the military officials that the firm’s
previous operations went hitch-free, even in 2011,
2012 and 2013 when Boko Haram insurgency in
Maiduguri was intense. “In past years, our flights
landed and took off to Saudi Arabia hitch-free,” a
company representative told our correspondent.

As tension rose, Governor Shettima sent the
secretary to the state government, Baba Ahmed
Jidda, to address the pilgrims and calm them
down. Afterwards, the pilgrims left in numerous
buses driving through the night in order not to
miss the inaugural from Kano to Saudi Arabia.

A Borno State government official said he was
perturbed that the military might be playing a
script to frustrate the Borno pilgrims because the
opposition APC controls the state.

The dust had hardly settled down when the military
also barred Senator Ndume, who represents Borno
South Senatorial District, from boarding an aircraft
chartered by the Borno State government. The 8-
seater aircraft had arrived in Maiduguri with some
state government officials from Abuja. It was
supposed to take off to Abuja with eight
passengers, including the senator and a member of
the House of Representatives. “The military ordered
the plane to take off empty, leaving behind all eight
persons, including the two lawmakers who were
scheduled to board the flight to Abuja.

A few months ago, the Maiduguri airport was
reopened by the Nigerian Air Space Management
Agency after the airport’s temporary closure
following an attack by insurgents on an air force
base near the airport. Following an appeal by
NAMA, the Borno State government had donated a
high-powered electricity generator as well as other
equipment that were installed in January to make
the resumption of flights possible.

Since January, flights have been landing and
taking off from the Maiduguri airport without any
incident, leading a source to question the
military’s actions yesterday.

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what does this mean for the entity Nigeria?

Good!

Borno is under emergency so total freedom should not be expected. Under state of emergency, everybody/everything is a suspect. So let Ndume feel the heat a little.

Nice one gud 4 dem?

Freedom of worship is a global human right that should not be impeded.

Evil people

otokx: Freedom of worship is a global human right that should not be impeded.

Same freedom of worship brought us to where we are today.
Some take this freedom far and become fanatics while others go extreme and become extremists.

Wow,dats so cool,let dem experience what the massess go thru everyday.
A fool said'the road is very risky'.
Their poo is smelling them

if something bad happen now they will say the military did not act. they acted now the people are complaining.

The Military is always at its best when it comes to witch-hunting the opposition but are like withered grasses before Boko Haram insurgents..

The pdp christian dominated miltary are doing their best against Islam. Buy let them know that Islam has suffered bigger attacks (even by the almighty US and Europe), buy is still waximg stronger globally.

And for you haters saying they deserve it, dont forget your turn is coming sooner or later.

we might not know it, but this our attempt to ascribe religion to every thing might just be setting Nigeria on a self destruct mode.

Unfortunately, OP you have not told us WHY the military barred them. Give us the 2 sides of the story please. Don't instigate religious hatred.

Novice1: The pdp christian dominated miltary are doing their best against Islam. Buy let them know that Islam has suffered bigger attacks (even by the almighty US and Europe), buy is still waximg stronger globally.

And for you haters saying they deserve it, dont forget your turn is coming sooner or later.

Bigot!
The Chief of Air Staff who gave the order is a muslim.

they gave reason for it so what's the big deal?